After a brief delay, Apple has released watchOS 2. The latest version of Apple's operating system for the Apple Watch, watchOS 2 is available for download through the Apple Watch companion app on iOS 9. Accordingly, you'll need to update your phone to iOS 9 before you can update your Apple Watch to watchOS 2.
watchOS 2 brings a number of improvements to the Apple Watch experience. Notably, developers can now create apps that run natively on the watch. The update also includes a new Nightstand mode, along with support for Apple Music.
For more on watchOS 2, be sure to read the iMore review. You can also discuss the update with the community in our Apple Watch forums.
- watchOS 2 review
- How to download watchOS 2 on your Apple Watch
- Apple Watch help and discussion forums
After a brief delay, Apple has released watchOS 2. The latest version of Apple's operating system for the Apple Watch, watchOS 2 is available for download through the Apple Watch companion app on iOS 9. Accordingly, you'll need to update your phone to iOS 9 before you can update your Apple Watch to watchOS 2.
watchOS 2 brings a number of improvements to the Apple Watch experience. Notably, developers can now create apps that run natively on the watch. The update also includes a new Nightstand mode, along with support for Apple Music.
For more on watchOS 2, be sure to read the iMore review. You can also discuss the update with the community in our Apple Watch forums.
- watchOS 2 review
- How to download watchOS 2 on your Apple Watch
- Apple Watch help and discussion forums
This update contains new features and capabilities for users and developers including the following:
- New watch faces and timekeeping features
- Time-lapse videos of Hong Kong, London, Mack Lake, New York, Shanghai, and Paris
- Photo and Photo Album so you can see your favorite images every time you raise your wrist, including support for Live Photos
- Time Travel with the Digital Crown to see what's coming in the future or what's happened in the past
- Nightstand Mode so your Watch can be used as a besdside alarm clock
- 9 new colors to customize your watch face, and a new multicolor Modular face
- Support for third-party apps to create complications
- Siri improvements
- Start a specific workout, get transit directions, or ask to see a glance
- Support for FaceTime audio calling and replying to email
- Support for HomeKit to control supported devices in your home using Siri
- New support for Austria, Belgium (French and Dutch), and Norway
- Activity and Workout improvements
- Workouts from third party apps on the watch can be included in your Activity rings
- Activity rings, workouts, and achievements can be shared from the Activity app on the iPhone
- Interactive achievements
- On-demand weekly summary
- Mut Activity notifications for one day
- Workouts saved automatically
- Apple Pay and Wallet improvements
- Support for Discover cards
- Support for rewards cards and store credit and debit cards
- Add passes to Wallet directly from third party apps on your Watch
- Friends and Digital Touch improvements
- Add more than 12 Friends directly from Apple Watch
- Multiple Friends' groups that you can name
- Send sketches using multiple colors
- New options for animated emoji
- Maps improvements
- Transit view, showing transit lines, stations and intermodal connections in select major cities
- View the list of directions for your current route
- View station placards with departure information
- Music improvements
- New Beats 1 button to start playing the 24/7 radio station
- New Quick Play button to play a variety of songs from Apple Music
- Replay to emails using dictation, emoji, or smart replies customized specifically for email
- Make and receive calls using FaceTime audio
- Support for Wi-Fi calling without iPhone in proximity on participating carriers
- Activation Lock prevents anyone from activating your Apple Watch without your Apple ID and password
- New developer capabilities including
- Native SDK to build faster and more powerful apps running natively on Apple Watch
- Access to accelerometer to more granularly track your motion
- Access to heart rate sensor for use during a workout
- Access to microphone and speaker to record and play audio
- Access to Taptic Engine with 8 different types of Haptic feedback
- Access to the Digital Crown for more precise controls
- Ability to play video directly on Apple Watch
- Support for running apps without iPhone in proximity, including access to networking capabilities when connected to known Wi-Fi networks
- Complications on the watch face
- Workouts from apps can be counted towards Activity rings
- Workouts from apps can be included in Activity app on iPhone
- New support for system language in English (India), Finnish, Indonesian, Norwegian, and Polish
- New support for dictation in Dutch (Belgium), English (Ireland, Philippines, South Africa). French (Belgium), German (Austria), Spanish (Chile, Colombia)
- New support for smart replies in Traditional Chinese (Hong Kong, Taiwan), Danish, Dutch, English (New Zealand, Singapore), Japanese, Korean, Swedish, Thai
Some features may not be available for all countries or all areas.
For information on the security content of this update, please visit this website: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1222
Reader comments
watchOS 2 now available to the public
What if you are on iOS 9.1 beta?
watchOS 1.0.1
You software is up to date.
Refresh X 2. WatchOS 2: 515MB
About 5 days remaining
Downloading on my 6Plus as we speak. . . 4 hrs remaining. . . :-( We will see if this changes. BTW does anyone know if the watch has to be on the charger? Right now it is on my wrist fully charged
Yes it needs to be on a charger. Instructions are right on the download page in the Apple Watch App. Must have batt level over 50% too.
Still nothing to see here
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Downloading now, on 9.1 beta
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Ugh! I have to wait until I get home and put it on the charger and connect to WiFi. -_-
I think it's stupid in 2015 we have to be on WiFi. Verizon brags about their LTE and soon 5G but won't make any difference if I have to be dependent on WiFi. I have unlimited data and would love to just pay $30 to use that as my internet. It's a way around paying Comcast $100 for Internet.
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Yeah. Really annoying! I have unlimited data.
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Except your unlimited isn't really unlimited... So I'm not sure how thats gonna work out for you when you have to do some actual data consumption at good rates.
Verifying for the past 30 minutes. Nothing spinning so not sure if anything is really happening
Now failed. No error. Restarting...
Now an error about there not being enough space to install an app (Forza) and back to the beginning again (or rather a Checking for update... loop).
Now finally installing!
I've tried every 15 min For the last hour so far nothing. iOS 9.1.
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Same here. Running 9.1 beta and no software update at all. Attempted many restarts on the phone and even uninstalled the beta profiles and nothing :(
RichChestmat i getting the same Verifying problem i took off my passcode see if that helps,
it get me error no room for airbnb so removed it, and starting again. now on Verifying
Updated. I reduced the number of photos syncd and that may have helped
I've just updated. It took a couple of hours to download and install but it's finally done. One of the things I've noticed immediately is that wrist detection is much, much, better. One of my biggest annoyances with the watch was raising my wrist and the screen remaining dark. It seems fixed now.
Yay!! Downloading :)
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But it still won't install! Took nearly 2 hrs to download, yet finally did complete download.
Phone connects to watch immediately when OFF charger. Error message appears "installation paused, connect to charger"
When I connect to charger, phone can no longer connect to watch: so stuck in perpetual "verifying" mode, with occasional error messages saying "error, cannot connect". Update failed"
I have rebooted phone and watch. Numerous times.
WTF- anyone else???
Update: I just removed passcode on the watch per comment per eim23x above. Rebooted watch and phone again. Still stuck at 'verifying'. I am on iOS 9.0 public release (not a developer, no betas for me).
Can someone tell me... When you are out of Bluetooth range of your phone but on your WiFi, can you receive SMS messages and incoming phone call notifications? On watch OS 1, you could only receive iMessages, not SMS or call notifications.
Thanks!
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